Most of Whitman’s time during the Cival War was spent in Washington, D.C., where Whitman apparently would see the young President Abraham Lincoln cruising around town. Well, not cruising exactly. Lincoln took a horse or carriage ride every day, and the poet was often on the side of the road—you know, thinking poetic thoughts and such. As Lincoln passed, the two would bow to each other, though Lincoln may never have known who the gray-bearded man on the side of the road was. Whitman claimed that he could even see Lincoln’s office, lit by candlelight, as Lincoln worked late into the night, burning the midnight…uh, wax. Lincoln remained in office after the Civil War ended. The Union was preserved, and the country began the era of Reconstruction. It appeared that President Lincoln had guided the nation back into safer harbors, and the American people respected him greatly for the clear-headed leadership that he provided. Our man Walt was no exception. Unfortunately, though, Lincoln was assassinated on April 14, 1865, just five days after the Confederate surrender. Whitman, crushed, held vigil as his hero passed away. To mourn the loss of his president, Whitman wrote “O Captain! My Captain!” and it became what folks in the music biz would call a smash hit single.
Whitman became a famous American poet in his own time. The poem itself went through many versions up until the 1891-1892 edition (the last edition) of Leaves of Grass.
Dead Poets Society Part 2
Most of Whitman’s time during the Cival War was spent in Washington, D.C., where Whitman apparently would see the young President Abraham Lincoln cruising around town. Well, not cruising exactly. Lincoln took a horse or carriage ride every day, and the poet was often on the side of the road—you know, thinking poetic thoughts and such. As Lincoln passed, the two would bow to each other, though Lincoln may never have known who the gray-bearded man on the side of the road was. Whitman claimed that he could even see Lincoln’s office, lit by candlelight, as Lincoln worked late into the night, burning the midnight…uh, wax.Lincoln remained in office after the Civil War ended. The Union was preserved, and the country began the era of Reconstruction. It appeared that President Lincoln had guided the nation back into safer harbors, and the American people respected him greatly for the clear-headed leadership that he provided.
Whitman became a famous American poet in his own time. The poem itself went through many versions up until the 1891-1892 edition (the last edition) of Leaves of Grass.
http://www.shmoop.com/o-captain-my-captain/